Judith A. Langer

Judith A. Langer is an internationally recognized scholar of literacy learning and English language arts education, known for her research on how people become skilled readers and writers and how they use reading and writing to learn. She is Vincent O’Leary Distinguished Research Professor Emeritus of education at the University at Albany, State University of New York, where she has also served as professor of education and chaired the Department of Educational Theory and Practice. Langer founded and directed the Albany Institute for Research in Education and has directed major federally funded centers, including the Center on Literature Teaching & Learning and the National Research Center on English Learning & Achievement.

An educational psychologist by training, Langer’s work has produced numerous books, articles, and technical reports on literacy, language, and learning, and she has been closely involved with the National Assessment of Educational Progress, authoring multiple monographs on reading and writing achievement. Her influential books include Envisioning Literature, Envisioning Knowledge, How Writing Shapes Thinking, Getting to Excellent: How to Create Better Schools, Effective Literacy Instruction: Building Successful Reading and Writing Programs, and Writing Instruction That Works: Proven Methods for Middle and High School Classrooms, the last co‑authored with Arthur N. Applebee.